Opinion
With seven of the starting 11 players for the Olyroos at the Olympics, the City group’s powerhouse dynasty doesn’t look to be slowing down.
The powerhouse of world football and quite possibly one of the most well-known football franchises in the world, the City group itself isn’t as recognised to outsiders as the leader of the franchise – Manchester City – has become.
City Football Group owns clubs all over the world including reigning A-League champions Melbourne City. The group owns teams across five continents: Manchester City (England), New York City FC (USA), Montevideo City Torque (Uruguay), Lommel (Belgium), Troyes (France), Girona (Spain), Mumbai City (India), Sichuan Jiuniu (China), Yokohama F Marinos (Japan) and Melbourne City (Australia).
Australia’s Olyroos side is full of talent with players like Mitchell Duke and the captain Thomas Deng. But you only must look at the goal scorers to see the names Lachlan Wales and Marco Tilio, two young Australian superstars still with or previously with the City group.
(Photo: Getty Images)
Wales is currently with the Western United team in the A-League. He made his name in the sky-blue colours of Melbourne City between the years of 2018-2020.
The most iconic name in the current the side is superstar striker Daniel Arzani, who has taken the world by storm over the last few years in Europe with his attacking prowess.
Arzani is owned by the City group and is the most experienced of the Olyroos’ team, technically playing for Manchester City although on loan to other European clubs as he battles injury and tries to crack into a star-studded Man City team filled with some of the world’s best.
But like many of the Olyroos, he started at Melbourne City, allowing him to be seen by clubs all around the globe.
In a huge positive for Australian football and a warning to the rest of the A-League franchises, the might and power of the Melbourne City dynasty is well and truly here to stay after performances in Tokyo.
City’s championship-winning youngsters have been the driving force behind the Olyroos’ success in their win over Argentina and solid performance in the loss at the mercy of Spain.
Coming off the bench, the little wunderkind Marco Tilio has lead Australia’s attack with his lightning pace and link-up play, providing opportunities galore for the likes of Arzani, Wales and Duke in attack.
(Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)
While through the middle, Connor Metcalfe has stood up and taken both ends of the ground as his own. Countless times throughout the two group games, Metcalfe has been winning the ball in attack, getting back to release the pressure on our back four.
Yet once the ball is won, he is the key link-up in most of the attacking moves of the Australians, linking up wide with Riley McGree and Denis Genreau out wide, then getting into an aggressive position in the box.
While in goal, there are no surprises that another Melbourne City prodigy is Thomas Glover. The 190-centimetre shot stopper is having the season of his life, as one of the best keepers in the A-League.
Glover cemented his spot in the Olyroos on the back of being key to City’s run to champions. Throughout both group games, Glover has provided crucial saves for Australia that have led to goals or minimised the attack of teams undoubtedly better than the Olyroos.
The might of the City group and future of Melbourne City’s rise to glory in Australia continues to grow, highly evident through seven of the starting 11 for the Olyroos currently playing for Melbourne City or beginning their careers through Melbourne City.
With the likes of Nathaniel Atkinson, Metcalfe, Tilio and Glover, the A-League and the world has been put on notice of the dynasty the City group has grown to be in Australia.
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